Mail-bag catcher.



No. 704,904. Patented July 15, 1902-.

C. G. MclLYAR.

MAIL BAG GATBHEB.

(Application med Sept. 24, 1901.

(No Model.

IN VENTOH (Erwin wmvsssgs UNITED STATES f PATENT -OFFICE.

CORYVIN CQMOILYAR, OFCAMBRIDGE, OHIO.

MAlL-BAG CATCHER.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters PatentNo. 704,904, dated July 15, 1902. l Application filed September 24, 1901. Serial No. 76,414. (No model.)

, To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, OoRwIN G. MoI YAR, a citizen of the UnitedStates, and a resident of Cambridge, in the county of Guernsey and State of Ohio, have invented a new and Improved Mail-Bag Catcher and Deliverer, of

The invention consists in the novel construction and combination of parts, as hereinafter described ,and defined in the appended claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a side view of the improvement applied upon a car-body shown partially.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same. Fig. 3 is an end view of the catcher-head seen in direction of the arrow at in Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a partly-sectional end view of parts shown in Fig. 3, said details being difierently adjusted.

Fig. 5 is an end view of parts shown in Fig. 4:, the catcher-arms being removed and other details shown broken and in section. Fig. 6 is a fragmentary detail view. of parts seen in the direction of the arrow m in Fig.2. Fig. 7 is a perspective view of a novel catcher-jaw employed, and Fig. 8 is a partly-sectional front edge view of the duplicate catcher-jaws and means to move them.

The improvement is to be supported upon the inside of the side wall of a mail-car and adjacent to a door opening therein.

In the drawings, 10 indicates a side wall of a mail-car whereon the novel catcher device is supported for use as follows:

Two braced bracket-arms 11 12 are affixed at a proper distance apart in the same vertical plane on the inner surface of the car side wall 10, these bracketarms having a suitable elevation above the car-floor (not shown) to facilitate the operation of the working parts of the catcher.

A rock-shaft 13 is journaled by its ends vertically between the horizontal bracketarms 11 12, and upon said shaft intermediate its ends the bent catcher-arm 14 is secured by one end and projects at right angles thereopening a in the side wall 10 and outwardly therefrom, as shown in Fig. 1.

Upon the free end of the catcher-arm 14 a catcher-head 15 .is held to rock transversely by its loose engagement with a journal-pin 5, formed on the end of the arm, which adapts the head to as some the pendent position shown in Fig. 5 when the catcher device is not in service.

As shown in Figs. 4 and 5, the journal-pin b has two projections 5' formed on it that are distant ninety degrees from each other, and from the block or head 15 a lug b projects, which may have contact with either projeo tion I). 7

It will be seen that the projections 13 and lug b define the degree of rocking movement had by theblock 15, so that it will be arrested when it is ,in a level position, as shown in Fig. 4, and in like manner be checked when.

in pendent adjustment, as represented in Fig. 5. The catcher-head 15 is in the form of an oblong block having a longitudinal psssage c therein to loosely receivethe slide-bar 16, which is forked at one end, affording two spaced parallel limbs 16*.

At theupper and lower sides of the block 15 two similar ears 15 project therefrom at the same end of the block,.and on said ears two similar tubular journal-sections project toward each other, having their meeting ends (3 interlocked, as shown in Fig. 5, said sections together forming the cylindrical journal 17, which may be integral with the ears 15"" or be secured thereon.

Through the perforation .in the journal 17 abolt 17 is inserted and secured, which binds represented clearly in Fig. 7, each jaw consists of a hook member 18 and a bufierelimb 18, both extended from ahollow hub cl. The

v or below it.

two catcher-jaws are loosely mounted upon the journal-sleeve 17 one over the other and spaced from the ears 15 by the collars c. The catcher-jaws are so arranged that the hook member 18 on one jaw will loosely contact with a buffer-limb 18, that may be above As shown in Fig. 2, the hook member of one jaw is disposed over the bufferlimb of the other jaw at the left side of said view, and the positions of said parts are shown reversed at the right side of the same.

The limbs 16 of the slide-bar 16 are loosely secured at their outer ends upon the bufferlimbs 18, there being a transverse slotin each limb near its extremity, which is engaged by a pivotstud e, screwed into a respective buffer-limb. The opposite end of the slidebar 16 is bent down to afford a guide-piece thereon having an opening to receive loosely the body of a carrier-arm 15", that projects from the head-block 15 directly below the slide-bar. Above the slide-bar 16 a keeperarm 15 is projected from the head-block 15, and upon the outer end of the keeper-arm a detent-finger 15 is pivoted by one end, so that the lower end thereof may have loose contact with the end of the carrier-arm 15 A spring 15 is secured upon the keeper-arm 15 and presses the detent-fingcr against the arm 15", as shown in Fig. 3.

The construction and arrangement of parts are such that the buffer-limbs 18 will receive forward adjustment and the hook members 18 be spread apart a maximum degree when the slide-bar 16 is moved forward a proper distance, as represented in Figs. 2 and 3.

A series of ratchet-teeth g are formed in the bottom wall of the passage 0, and a tooth h, that extends from the slide-bar 16, may engage with any of said teeth g.

Upon the rock-shaft 13 a handle-lever 13 is secured so as to project laterally therefrom, and upon the body of said shaft the torsion-spring 13* is mounted, having one, end thereof connected with a projection on the shaft and its opposite end engaged with another projection on the bracket-arm 12, as shown in Fig. l. The twist of the coiled spring 13 is in a direction which will cause said spring to be wrapped more closely upon the shaft 13 when the handle-lever'13 is rocked in the direction of the curved arrow :6 in Fig. 1, which movement of the lever will swing the catcher-arm 14 outward at right angles to the side wall 10 of the car.

Upon the bracket-arm 12 a detent-dog 12 is supported by its pivotal engagement at one end thereof with a projection 12" on said bracket-arm, and a spring 12 is secured by its ends respectively upon the bracket-arm and the free end of the dog.

When the bag-catcher is not in service, the catcher-arm 14 is disposed at the side of the car, either Within the car or exterior thereof, as may be preferred, the disposal of parts as shown in Fig. 1 adapting the device for a complete housing of the catcher-arm headblock and jaws thereon within the car-body. To retain the catcher-arm 14 in the outward or extended position, the detent-dog 12 is engaged by its upper end with the handle-lever 13" and holds it against stress of the spring 13 which will instantly throw the catcherarm inwardly when the dog is released from the handle-lever.

To adapt the improvement for delivery of a mail-bag, such as A, at a proper locality on the railroad, a clasp 19, having a'ring 20 thereon, is connected with the mail-bag, and said ring is mounted upon the carrier-arm 15 and subsequently the detent-finger 15 is permitted to engage with the end of the carrier-arm, being pressed thereon by the spring 15 When the bag A is hung on the end of the carrier arm 15*, its weight will cause the catcher head-block and jaws 18 18 to rock into a level position, the engagement of. the lug b with one projection 12 on the journalpin 5 of the catcher-arm 14 serving to arrest the block when it becomes horizontal, and thus give to the jaws 18 18 correct positions for the reception of a mail-bag.

Assuming that the mail-car having the improved bag catcher and delivereris approaching a station where mail is to be dropped and received and that there is a mail-bag A hung on the carrier-arm 15", the jaws 18 18 being spread apart, as indicated in Fig. 2, and the catcher-arm 14 swung out from the car, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, it will be seen that if the bufier-limbs 18 are struck by a mailbag hanging from a support at the side of the railroad-track, as usual, the operation of the device will be as follows: The impact of the mail-bag and its contents upon the buffer-limbs 18 will spread them farther than they diverge in normal adjustment, and this will rock the hook members 18 toward the mail-bag that has impinged upon the buffer-limbs. The closing movement of the hook members 18 will cause them to clasp the mail-bag, and as the force of impact sustained by the buffer-limbs 18 is transmitted to the slide-bar 16 the latter will recede and ride over the ratchet-teeth g, and when the bag is firmly clasped this adjustment of the hook members 18 will be maintained by engagement of the tooth it between two ratchetteeth g, and therefore prevents the release of the gripped bag until the slide-bar 16 is raised sufficiently to release the tooth h from the teeth g. Simultaneously with the grasping of the mail-bag by the hook members 18 the consequent rearward movement of the slide-bar 16 will push the ring 20 06 of the carrier-arm 15 and drop the bag A. The force of the impact of the mail-bag is further taken up by the torsion-spring 13*, which allows the catcher-arm 14 to move back, releasing the detent-dog 12 from the handlelever. After the mail-bag has been caught and dropped the release of the handle-lever 13, as above described, will return the catchenarm 14 to the side of the car or into IIC it, as the arrangement may be, this being effected by the tension of the torsion-spring 13 and as there is no extra weight on the carrier-arm 15 the weight of the jaws 18 18 will supported catcher-arm, a head-block on one end of the catcher-arm, two jaws held to rock on each other, each jaw having a bufier-limb and a hook member, and means to hold the hook members closed upon a mail-bag.

3. A bag-catcher, comprising a supported rock-shaft, spring-pressed to rock in one direction, a catcher-arm extended from the rock-shaft, a handle-lever on said shaft, a

head-block on the free end of the catcherarm, a slide-bar working through the headblock, two jaws held to rock on the headblock and adapted to slide the bar when they are rocked, each jaw comprising a bufferlimb and a hook member, and a device on the block and slide-bar adapted to detachably hold said bar retracted when moved by the aws.

4. A bag catcher and deliverer, comprising a rockably-supported catcher-arm, a headblock on one end of the catcher-arm, a slidebar having a forked end and occupying a longitudinal passage in the head-block, two lapped catcheejaws pivoted on the headblock near one end and loosely connected with the fork-limbs of the slide-bar, each jaw consisting of a buifer-limb and a hook member, the hook members closing when the buffer-limbs are pressed apart, and a support for a mail-bag at the opposite end of the headblock, from which support said bag will be removed by pressure of the slide-bar thereon, effected when the hook members of the jaws grasp a bag. 7 I

5. In a device of the character described, a bracket-supported rockshaft, a torsionspring on said shaft adapted when under tension to rock the shaft in one direction, ahandie-lever on the rockshaft, a catcher-arm on the rock-shaft, a bag catcher and delivery device on the free end of said arm, and comprising catcher-jaws for a bag and a support for a bag to be delivered, a spring-controlled dog adapted to engage the handle-lever to hold the spring coiled under tension, and the catcher-arm outward, the said dog being arranged to be released by the impact of the mail-bag on the catcher-jaws, and means for moving the bag to be delivered from said sup port, the said means being also actuated by the impact of the mail-bag on the catcher jaws.

6. In a mail-bag catcher, a supported rockshaft, a spring on said shaft adapted to rock the shaft in one direction, means for rocking the shaft and holding the shaft rocked, a catcher-arm, a head-block, two lapped catcherjaws pivoted on the head-block, a slide-bar forked at one end and loosely engaged at the ends of the fork-limbs with the members of the catcher-jaws, the rocking of the jaws to open and close them sliding the bar, a bent end on the slide-bar having an opening therein, a carrier-arm on the head-block adapted to receive and support a mail-bag, and a spring-pressed detent device for temporarily holding th'e'bag engaged with the carrier arm.

7. In a device of the character described, the pair of lapped and pivotally-supported catcher-jaws, each 3' aw consisting of a hollow hub, a co'nvex-edgedbuffer-limb extended at one side of the hub, and a hook member curved laterally and forwardly from said hub at the opposite side from the'bufier-limlm 8. In a device of the character described,

the catcher device on a head-block, a rock-.

ably-supported catcher-arm, said arm having a journal-pin on one end whereon the headblock is held to rock.

9. In a device of the character described, the combination with an arm supported to swing outward on a car, a torsion-spring tending to rock the arm inward, means for holding the arm in the outward position against the tension of the spring, and a mail-bag catcher and delivery device carried on the outer end of said arm, the said torsion-spring being arranged to permit the arm to move back under the force of the impact of the'mail-bag, thereby releasing'the holding means, and allowing the spring to move the arm inward.

10. In adevice of the character described, a rockably-supported catcher-arm mounted to swing outward on a car, a mail-bag catcher and delivery device carried on the outer end of said arm and comprising catcher-jaws, a support for a bag to be delivered and aslidin g device actuated by the movement of the catcher-jaws for moving the bag from said support when the catcher-jaws grasp a bag.

11. In a mail-bag catcher, a bracket-supported rock-shaft, a torsion-spring on said shaft, adapted to rock the shaft in one direction, a handle-lever on the rock-shaft, a dog adapted to engage the lever and hold the spring coiled under tension, at catcher-arm on the rock-shaft and a bag-catcher device on the free end of said arm and comprising catcher-jaws pivoted to open and close and each having a buiferlimb and a hook mem ber.

12. In a device of the character described, the combination with an arm supported to swing outward on a car, a mail-bag catcher and delivery device carried on the outer end of In testimony whereof I have signed my said arm, and comprising-a. support fora mailname to this specification in the presence of bag, pivoted catcher-jaws, a. slide-bar contwo subscribing witnesses.

nected with the catcher-jaws and adapted to CORWIN C. MOILYAR. move the bag from said support when the Witnesses: eatcher-jawsgraspa bag,andatorsion-spring THOMAS J. NORRIS,

tending to swing the arm inward. GEO. GASKILL. 

